Four-week study scholarship from CLEC: group applications of 10 to 15 and what is not paid
Sources checked · Unofficial summary
The four-week study scholarship is one of the programmes under the International Chinese Language Teachers Scholarship, administered by the Center for Language Education and Cooperation (CLEC). In the 2025 guidelines, it was a maximum four-week programme that could start in July or December 2025, and it was to be organised and applied for by a Recommending Institution in groups of 10 to 15 participants. Applicants in the tracks named in the guidelines — Chinese language study, traditional Chinese medicine, Taiji culture, and Chinese language plus homestay with a Chinese family — had to provide an HSK test score, and before the trip a detailed study plan had to be made with the host institution and submitted to CLEC for review and approval.
The scholarship covered tuition, accommodation and comprehensive medical insurance. Four-week students were excluded from the living allowance, and the insurance premium for four-week students was RMB 100 per person.
The terms above come from the 2025 guidelines, which were written for programmes starting between July 2025 and March 2026. They are the dates and terms of that cycle and have passed; for the current edition and current dates, check chinese.cn.
Application timing for the July and December 2025 starts
Online registration for the 2025 cycle opened on February 20, 2025, on the International Chinese Language Teachers Scholarship website, chinese.cn. Because the four-week programme was scheduled to start in July or December 2025, the deadlines that applied to it were the ones for those two start months.
For the July 2025 start, applicants had to complete their applications by April 15, 2025 (Beijing Time), and Recommending Institutions and Host Institutions had to complete the review by April 25, 2025. For the December 2025 start, applicants had to complete their applications by September 15, 2025, and the institutional review had to be completed by September 25, 2025.
The 2025 guidelines also list deadlines for ICLT programmes commencing in September 2025 and March 2026. Those are not start months of the four-week programme, so those deadlines do not apply to it.
CLEC entrusted an expert panel to review applications. The guidelines state that decisions were based on HSK and HSKK levels and scores, geographical distribution, and other factors, and that results were announced about three months before the programme started.
Who applies: the Recommending Institution and the study plan
The guidelines say the programme may be organized and applied for by a Recommending Institution, with 10 to 15 participants per group. They do not describe a separate individual application route for the four-week programme. A Recommending Institution is therefore the body that organises the group and submits the application.
Before the trip, a detailed study plan has to be made in consultation with the Host Institution or Institutions. That plan then has to be submitted to CLEC for review and approval. The 2025 guidelines do not say what happens if CLEC does not approve the plan, or how far in advance of the trip the plan is due.
Subjects and the HSK requirement
The four-week programme is described through the tracks an applicant can join: Chinese language study, traditional Chinese medicine, Taiji culture, and Chinese language plus homestay with a Chinese family. The guidelines require applicants in these tracks to provide an HSK test score.
They do not state a required HSK level or a minimum score for the four-week programme. The application-review section says decisions were based on HSK and HSKK levels and scores, geographical distribution, and other factors, but it does not set out a cut-off for this programme.
What the scholarship pays for
Appendix 1 of the 2025 guidelines lists what the International Chinese Language Teachers Scholarship supports: tuition, accommodation, living allowance (excluding four-week study programme students) and comprehensive medical insurance. For the four-week programme, that means tuition, accommodation and comprehensive medical insurance are covered, and the living allowance is not.
| Item | Four-week study programme, 2025 guidelines |
|---|---|
| Length | Maximum of four weeks |
| Tuition | Covered. Host institutions use tuition fees for education and management, cultural programming and HSK tests. |
| Accommodation | Covered. Host institutions provide free on-campus accommodation, typically double rooms. Off-campus stays are possible with host-institution approval. |
| Living allowance | Not covered. Four-week students are expressly excluded. |
| Comprehensive medical insurance | Covered. Host institutions purchase it under Ministry of Education regulations. The premium for four-week students is RMB 100 per person. |
The same appendix sets different insurance premiums for other ICLT programmes: RMB 400 per person for one-semester study programme students and RMB 800 per person/year for students studying more than one year. Those are not the four-week figures.
For accommodation, the guidelines describe a monthly off-campus accommodation allowance of RMB 700 per person/month for non-doctoral students and RMB 1,000 per person/month for doctoral students, but they do not explain how that monthly allowance would apply to a four-week stay.
Questions people ask
Who organises the four-week study scholarship?
The scholarship is administered by CLEC as part of the International Chinese Language Teachers Scholarship. The four-week programme may be organised and applied for by a Recommending Institution, with 10 to 15 participants per group, and the study plan must be approved by CLEC. The 2025 guidelines do not set out an individual application route for this programme.
Does the four-week programme pay a living allowance?
No. Appendix 1 of the 2025 guidelines lists living allowance as part of the scholarship coverage but expressly excludes four-week study programme students. Four-week students are covered for tuition, accommodation and comprehensive medical insurance instead, with the insurance premium set at RMB 100 per person.
What is the insurance premium for four-week students?
The 2025 guidelines set the comprehensive medical insurance premium for four-week study programme students at RMB 100 per person. The insurance is purchased by the host institution in accordance with applicable regulations on overseas students stipulated by the Ministry of Education of China.
When did the four-week programme start and when was the application due?
Under the 2025 guidelines, it was scheduled to start in July or December 2025 and last a maximum of four weeks. For the July 2025 start, applications were due by April 15, 2025; for the December 2025 start, by September 15, 2025 (Beijing Time). These are the dates of that cycle and have passed; check chinese.cn for the current edition.
Sources
- Application Guidelines for International Chinese Language Teachers Scholarship 2025 — Center for Language Education and Cooperation (CLEC, chinese.cn)
- chinese.cn (International Chinese Language Teachers Scholarship application website) — Center for Language Education and Cooperation (CLEC)
Checked October 10, 2026 This page is an unofficial summary, is not published by or affiliated with the Center for Language Education and Cooperation (CLEC) or chinese.cn, and if this page differs from the official notice, the official notice prevails.